A DISGUSTED dad-of-four told how he found a “sickening” image of a child and five diaries belonging to a Southport paedophile.

Contractor Sean Ellison made the discovery while emptying a garage on Albert Road in Southport.

The diaries and indecent photograph belonged to Paul Holden who was jailed after he photographed children undressing on the beach at Formby and downloaded 2,000 child porn images.

Mr Ellison, who owns Design and Build Solutions, said: “We were just doing a rip out on a job, we’d been told to empty the garage.

“I’ve got four kids so as soon as I came across it I felt sick.

“I handed the pictures over to the police.”

The 31-year-old later discovered the diaries among topless pictures of women and brochures from Tower Productions – an internet site for family naturism.

He said: “It was very strange.”

Paul Holden, of Queens Road, was told by Judge John Roberts – who jailed him indefinitely – that he represented a “significant risk of serious harm to the public”.

Liverpool Crown Court heard Holden’s offences came to light by chance after firefighters were called to a kitchen fire at his flat in Scarisbrick Road, Southport, on November 29, 2005.

A fireman noticed a photograph of a naked 13-year-old in a printer tray next to a computer in the adjacent room and told the police.

Female underwear, including a pair of knickers for a 10-year-old child, were discovered and police seized his computer, DVDs, CDs, camera and camcorder. It was found there were more than 2,000 indecent images of children on the computer including pictures he had taken of children undressing on the beach.

The 42-year-old pleaded guilty to eight offences of making indecent photographs of children and 18 of possessing such images.

Sentencing him, Judge Roberts said the images involved erotic posing and children undressing.

He said: “The greater the number of hits websites containing such images get, the more demand for such images is seen to exist and the longer the abuse of children will continue.”

He ordered Holden must serve three months before he can apply for parole and ordered him to sign on the Sex Offenders Register for seven years.

The Southport Visiter reported his conviction in August last year for indecent exposure for which he received a community sentence.

Mr Ellison learned about Holden when we reported he would appear at Liverpool Crown Court for possessing and making indecent photographs.

David Owen, defending, said Holden had believed it was all right to look at such images in the privacy of his own home if they had not been paid for.